There are plenty of articles in the SP database. So type low-fat or low-carb in the search box up top and see what you can find. The body requires fat for various things, among them the absorption of certain vitamins. Not all carbs are 'bad', and the great weakness of the food tracker (in my opinion) is that it can't distinguish between simple and complex carbohydrates. Anyway, hope it goes well for you. A

Weight Watcher's has another good plan of healthy eating, Spark People has several WW teams and most have lots of recipes and advice. I follow Spark People and WW, it's worked for me, exercise is a big part of the plan as well. Find an exercise plan that you love to do, make some small goals and achieve your goals, that equals success. We are all different , what works for me may not work for you.. Good Luck with your Journey.

Thanks the tips and support.. after seeing all the posts i think it is best for me to balance all my foods... My dr had put me on a diet pill for a few months, and i loved t, but had very bad side affects.. So i will balance all and see about doing the sparks diet... Thanks all

I think most of us have tried whatever is the lates fad diet and here we are back trying to lose again. I think we all have to find what works for us and what we can live with long term not until we lose the weight but this must be a way of life if we want to keep the weight off. I think I have lost a person a couple of times but here I am losing again and this time I want it to be my last time-I am getting tired of carrying that person around with me!!! How about you? I try to get at least 60-90 min of exercise every day and limit my sugar and carb intake while upping the fruit and veggies and I am trying to rid my diet of more processed foods all the time.

I HAD A LADY, WHO LOST A GREAT DEAL OF WEIGHT & HASN'T GAINED ANY BACK,SAY THAT SHE JUST COUNTED HER CALORIES & EXERCISED A LITTLE EVERY DAY TO STRENGTHEN HER BONES. SHE SAID SHE GOT TIRED OF ALL THE DIETS THAT DIDN'T WORK FOR HER IN THE LONG RANGE. SHE ALSO HAS A SPECIAL PLATE THAT SHE USED. SHE MADE A PORTION SIZE CHART SO SHE'D KNOW WHAT IT REALLY WAS. I MUST SAY THE SIZE REALLY SURPRISED ME.

Personally, I lean toward the South Beach version of Healthy Low Carbs with Healthy Fats. I have a copy of the original book. There are three or four phases. I just follow the second and third phases most of the time, combined with keeping my calories between 1400 and 1600. I eat more fruit than South Beach recommends, but I mostly eat fresh raw fruit. I try to keep my fiber count up.

But I fully agree with the comments about EXERCISE. I think that revs up the metabolism. I could eat 1400 or less and gain weight if I didn't exercise.

Doing South Beach combined with Exercise, I have lowered my cholesterol 40 points.

Linda - North East Indiana, USA `Goal to build myself up to reach 1,000 fitness minutes per month.

As far as I know, the jury's still out on if it matters if calories come from fat or carbohydrates or proteins. Personally I think that carb and fat restriction is going to effect everyone differently because hey, we're all different. I can tell you that when I'm getting in workouts, and drinking my water, and journaling, and tracking my food I can lose consistently. To me, it's way too frustrating to keep up with effectiveness of one form of caloric restriction as compared to another.

Welcome! I would suggest neither should be the way to go unless your diet consists of excess of either fat or carbohydrates. You need a balance of all food groups to maintain good health. I would suggest following the SparkPeople recommended diet which is very balanced and suggests a caloric intake based on your height and weight. Very sensible program. If you use the Food Tracker, it will really help you to sort out if you are taking in either too much fat or carbohydrates. Good luck!

More exercise. In my opinion it's 70% exercise and only about 30% diet. If we look at hunter-gatherer societies - at least those that survive to present day - they eat a lot of calories, including carbohydrate. On average they eat even more than sit-on-butt people in industrial societies. Yet they are rarely overweight. It's the butt-sitting that is the problem. Exercise builds muscle which burns fat more efficiently. It energises the body. It lifts your self esteem. It reduces the desire to eat junk and moderates appetite. It keeps you busy and not dreaming of doughnuts. It tones the body. It reduces fatigue which means you will be less likely to binge at the end of the day. How many reasons do we need? So my advice would be to eat sensibly with a variety of healthy foods and not stress too much about the levels of anything in particular. Exercise will keep you on track and have you looking like a superstar.

SparkPeople, SparkCoach, SparkPages, SparkPoints, SparkDiet, SparkAmerica, SparkRecipes, DailySpark, and other marks are trademarks of SparkPeople, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
SPARKPEOPLE is a registered trademark of SparkPeople, Inc. in the United States, European Union, Canada, and Australia. All rights reserved.

NOTE: Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy last updated on October 25, 2013